


'Cause Fire Is The Devil's Only Friend

by MyHeartCanDream



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-07
Updated: 2013-11-07
Packaged: 2017-12-31 19:25:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1035463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyHeartCanDream/pseuds/MyHeartCanDream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"One last 'I love you, sweetie' escaped her lips and suddenly her back hit the hot, hard surface of the planet known only as Ckandfilat--the Inferno."</p>
            </blockquote>





	'Cause Fire Is The Devil's Only Friend

She knew exactly where they were by the hum of the engine.

 

The reactor room.

 

The ship that had captured the TARDIS wasn't just any ship--It could never be just any ship with her husband.

 

The cloth cover was pulled off her head and she blinked at the bright lights.

 

He was behind her by about ten feet, no doubt also suffering the shock of sudden light.

 

Her back was still to him, but she knew the panicked look that would definitely be plastered to his ridiculous face.

 

She could hear him begging--pleading through his tears for their captors to show her mercy.

 

The handcuffs on her wrists cut deeply into her skin as she struggled to free herself. It wasn't doing any good.

 

Her eyes opened wide in shock and terror as the airlock in front of her slid open to reveal her fate.

 

One last 'I love you, sweetie' escaped her lips and suddenly her back hit the hot, hard surface of the planet known only as Ckandfilat--the Inferno.

 

She immediately began coughing as smoke filled her lungs. In another minute, she had torn away the fabric of her shirt that covered her midriff and fastened it around her nose and mouth.

 

"Anytime now, my love." she muttered nervously as she tried to recall facts she'd learned about this planet as a student.

 

A loud hissing sound came from her left and she dove forward just as an explosion erupted from the direction of the sound.

 

"Fact one: Explosions common. Unmarked in force, frequency, and positions." she said aloud as she picked herself off the ground and stumbled forward and away from the origin of the blast. Her body screamed and her ears rang, but she pressed on.

 

Another loud hiss from directly in front of her caught her off guard and she turned herself to one side in an effort to minimize the damage.

 

Heat engulfed her and she choked as she swallowed a mouthful of smoldering air. The heat in her lungs temporarily rendered her unable to breathe and she struggled for air from her place on the dusty ground for a long minute.

 

Just as she was regaining air, she was forced to roll to her left as a large, fireball flew toward her position. The crash was enough to pull her out of her shock and she leaped to her feet.

 

"Fact two: Frequent fire rains." she said horsely, "Perfect."

 

The sky was a brilliant orange and yellow as the rain began descending. She didn't waste time watching it as it fell. She was nearly thirty meters away when she heard the first sizzle of impact behind her.

 

A small flame seared her left shoulder as it fell, then another stung the flesh on her right wrist. She allowed herself a quiet whimper before her resolve was reestablished. She scanned the wasteland for any sort of shelter and spotted a small overhang in the rocks a hundred meters or so ahead and to the left. She changed directionality easily and began sprinting faster as more rain burned through her clothes and scorched her flesh.

 

Just then, a glorious sound filled her ears.

 

That man. That impossible idiot.

 

"River!"

 

She glanced up and spotted him poking his head out of the TARDIS another hundred meters beyond the overhang.

 

"Doctor! Get out of here! She can't take this sort of damage!" she shouted, knowing full well he wouldn't leave her there, but wishing he would listen to her for once.

 

"I'm not leaving you!" he insisted, "Get over to that overhang and I'll try to land closer. We don't have much time!"

 

She didn't even bother to ask what he meant. Her muscles ached and burned, and her chest heaved and coughed as she adjusted her direction slightly and continued to race through the smoke and fire for the only hope she had.

 

"River, no!" she heard him shout, "To the overhang--you'll never make it to me in time."

 

She ignored him and continued her course toward the open doorway in which he stood. She heard a hiss and rolled to the right, narrowly avoiding an explosion much smaller than the first two she'd encountered thus far. She was back on her feet and running without missing a step.

 

"River! The overhang!"

 

Again she ignored him and continued running. She passed her original destination at full speed and suddenly lost her footing as the ground beneath her shook forcefully.

 

"Fact three," she panted, pushing herself harder as panic rose in her chest, "Inhabited by vicious, savage, wolf-like creatures, four times the size of those found on the planet Earth."

 

A rumbling sound came from behind her and she risked a glance backward as she struggled to regain her footing.

 

What she saw did nothing to comfort her.

 

"Teeth the size of large swords, coats the color of red-hot coals, furiosity to match even the most feared of beings. Believed to hunt in packs of five to twenty." she recited as she locked eyes with the man who was her refuge.

 

She watched the panic rise in his eyes as he realized there was no possible way she would make it to him before they got to her.

 

"Doctor--" she cried, "My blaster! On the console! Throw it!"

 

He raced inside and she glanced back over her shoulder again. They were gaining ground on her quickly. They would be on top of her in less than thirty seconds.

 

He reappeared and calculated the distances quickly. She knew what he was thinking.

 

"No--" she shouted, "Don't you dare."

 

He ignored her and lifted the gun's barrel with both hands.

 

"You're not a killer! Throw it to me, sweetie--"

 

Again, he ignored her and took aim at a target behind her.

 

"Doctor, don't--"

 

A sharp claw tore through the remains of her singed shirt and she let out a pained cry as she stumbled forward. She heard a shot and the offending animal snarled in pain. Bless that man.

 

She could feel hot blood running down her back and she pumped her legs faster as she heard the second hound leap. Another shot fired and the ground shifted under her feet as it crashed to the dirt just to her left.

 

She was within range of his throwing arm now and she watched his eyes widen as the blaster jammed up. He fought with it desperately.

 

"Throw it!" she cried.

 

He obeyed and his eyes shifted between the gun and the next hound. River watched his line of sight carefully as she made a leap for the gun. She caught it and rolled, unjamming it quickly and immediately firing blindly at the hound in mid air. She fired another shot as she scooted backward, and another, and another, until his arms scooped her from behind and dragged her to safety.

 

The TARDIS immediately slammed her doors shut and began flying into the vortex, sensing the need to be quick for the safety of her child and her thief.

 

"Are you alright? Oh, River, I'm so sorry! I--"

 

She slapped his cheek as hard as she could and pulled him into a desperate kiss.

 

"Don't you  _ever_  do that again." she ordered breathlessly as adrenalin continued to pump through her veins, "That was possibly the  _stupidest_  thing you've ever done."

 

He snatched the blaster from her grip and slid it across the floor and out of her reach. "If I had listened to you, you would have been killed!" he growled defensively, "How does that make me wrong?!"

 

She winced as she stood and fixed him with a pleading look. "It could have killed you--The you that you've worked so desperately to become after the time war. Putting a gun in your hands and letting you fire it--You could have--"

 

He sat down on the steps with his head in his hands and she sighed.

 

"I'm not saying you did the right thing--because we both know that isn't true," she said quietly as she sat down next to him and tried to get a better look at the gash in her shoulder, "But thank you."

 

He looked surprised for a moment, then his face softened and he reached out to help her with her injuries.

 

"I'm so sorry," he said as he helped her pull off the shredded fabric of her shirt, "This is all my fault--I should have let you fly--I should have gotten there sooner--I--"

 

She gathered the rags and held out her hand for him. "You're forgiven. Always and completely."

 

He grinned and began helping her toward the medical bay. "This'll be a fun one to tell the children someday, won't it, dear?"

 

She slapped his chest and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, sweetie--"

 

"All I'm saying is that it'll be fun for them to reenact in the den--all those pillows to throw and such."

 

"All you're saying is that really this whole ordeal was on purpose so you could make a case toward having children."

 

"Of course that isn't what I'm saying--I would never do something this dangerous on  _purpose_."

 

"Unless, of course, it  _is_  on purpose."

 

"Exactly."

 

"You impossible man--what ever am I going to do with you."

 

 


End file.
